Two children have died of COVID-19 as Prince Charles is seen for first time since testing positive
The World Health Organisation has warned that children can die of coronavirus too as Prince Charles has come out of hiding to thank health workers battling COVID-19.
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Two children have died from coronavirus as the World Health Organisation warns that it is not just a disease that is fatal for the elderly.
Dr Maria Van Kerkhove from the WHO’s emergency diseases unit confirmed the grim news.
And it comes as the overall death toll continues to spike, with Italy recording its highest one-day death toll of 919, despite more than three weeks of lockdown.
There had been some hope of a reduction in cases earlier this week but that has disappeared.
Dr Van Kerkhove said everyone needed to be vigilant and that governments had to act aggressively to control the disease.
“We have reports of the deaths of children, one in China and one in America,” she said, without providing further details of the cases.
The WHO was backing a string of tests for drugs that might stop the virus as well as tests that could identify who had already had the illness and may be able to return to work because they had some immunity.
Dr Mike Ryan, an Irishman who heads the health emergencies programme at the WHO, warned no-one should take the illness lightly.
“There’s no question that the elderly are affected but in South Korea 20 per cent of the deaths were under 60 years of age,” he said.
“And 15 per cent of the people in intensive care in Italy are under 50 years of age.
“Ten per cent of those under 50 will have a moderate or severe infection. For a significant minority of 20-60 year olds they will have a significant infection.”
Dr Ryan added in videos he had seen on social media of younger patients that they pointed out “this is not the flu.”
There were several trials of drugs happening around the world under the Solidarity brand with results being shared across the globe.
Reporters from around the globe quizzed the health experts, with questions about whether the virus could be contained at all.
Others asked whether the lockdowns across the world would lead to more government crackdowns and monitoring even after it ends.
Dr Ryan said the WHO was aware of the inconvenience, but said it would save lives.
He said lockdowns were the gift of people being selfless and that gift must not be taken for granted.
PRINCE CHARLES COMES OUT OF HIDING TO THANK HEALTH WORKERS
The Prince of Wales has been seen for the first time since testing positive for coronavirus.
Clarence House posted a video in their Instagram Stories of heir to throne Charles joining in with the round of applause for the National Health Service from Birkhall, his private home on the Balmoral estate in Scotland.
The Prince, 71, clapped along as he stood indoors smartly dressed in an open-necked shirt, and jacket with a handkerchief in his pocket.
Camilla, who is isolating from Charles because she does not have the COVID-19 illness, was also seen in separate footage clapping on her own as she looked out of an open window.
Charles had been at his desk working on Thursday.
He was said to be “enormously touched” by well-wishers’ kind words after receiving hundreds of get-well messages, the day after it was revealed he had contracted the disease.
He was not the only royal taking part in the countrywide Clap for Carers.
The youngest Royals expressed their gratitude for the men and women risking their lives on the medical frontline during the coronavirus pandemic.
In a post on the Kensington Royal Instagram page, Prince Louis was seen clapping for National Health Service workers alongside his sister, Princess Charlotte, and brother, Prince George.
“To all the doctors, nurses, carers, GPs, pharmacists, volunteers and other NHS staff working tirelessly to help those affected by #COVID19: thank you,” the post read.
Kensington Royals’s post has attracted the attention of thousands of social media users from all parts of the world, with some saying they are “touched” by the support and others commenting on how “cute” and “lovely” the children are.
The post comes as Buckingham Palace confirmed the Queen is in “good health” after Prince Charles was struck down with the coronavirus.
It also comes after pictures of the 93-year-old chatting on the phone to the Prime Minister were released.
The Queen held her weekly audience with Boris Johnson at a distance as Britain takes extra precautions to prevent the spread of the killer bug, reports The Sun reports.
A Palace spokesman said: “Her Majesty The Queen remains in good health.
“The Queen last saw the Prince of Wales briefly on the morning of March 12 and is following all the appropriate advice with regard to her welfare.”
The spokesman would not comment on whether the she had been tested for coronavirus.
Prince Charles tested positive for coronavirus this week, Clarence House announced.
The future king had been displaying mild symptoms but remains in “good health” after being diagnosed with the deadly bug on Monday.
Camilla, 72, tested negative for the virus, with the couple now self-isolating at their home in Balmoral, Scotland.
Meanwhile, Charles joked about being sprayed with chemicals when he arrived in Australia in the 60s at a function on the night he may have contracted coronavirus.
The heir to the British throne was with 200 business and society heavyweights at the historic Mansion House in London raising money for the Australian Red Cross bushfire relief fund the night before he became contagious.
Charles, whose love of Australia stretches back to when he attended Geelong Grammar as a teenager, cracked a joke about being disinfected when he visited Down Under.
His comments – made before the scale of the coronavirus was clear and before his own diagnosis – have now taken a different tone given he could have caught the virus at the Australian fundraiser.
“What I can say is when I first arrived in 1966 after a very, very long flight as a 16 year old I first of all was sprayed by some sort of chemical,” he said.
“When I got out there and went down the steps and at the bottom there was a rather squidgy tray with another (chemical) bath and by the end of this process I thought, do they really want me here?”
His off the cuff comments, which were witnessed by News Corp Australia but not in his official speech, were greeted with laughter from the crowd.
Charles and Camilla have six staff members with them at Birkhall in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Buckingham Palace has insisted the Queen was in good health but refused to say whether she had been tested for the coronavirus.
Aussie comedian Adam Hills sang the Australian anthem to the tune of Jimmy Barnes’ Working Class Man at the function.
Josh Piterman, an Australian who stars in the Phantom of the Opera on the West End, also performed.
Natalie Imbruglia, who is currently recording new music, was on the guest list but was not seen at the event, with an empty chair on her table in the middle of the room.
Julian Assange’s lawyer Jennifer Robinson was also there, along with former Sky News Australia boss Angelo Frangopoulos and his wife Rebecca.
Clarence House, the official spokespeople for Prince Charles, said that he had been to too many public events in the lead up to his diagnosis to pinpoint the source of his infection.
The Mansion House event was full, with barely elbow room between guests during the pre-drinks reception.
Prince Charles was mobbed by wellwishers, as he quizzed them about their green credentials.
At most points of the pre-dinner drinks he was shoulder to shoulder with at least three people, hanging on his every word.
He was whisked away with a police motorcade shortly after 10pm, following the dinner and his well-received 10 minute speech.
SELF-ISOLATION IN SCOTLAND
Prince Charles remained in Scotland after testing positive to the coronavirus, as a caring “people’s army” of 500,000 brave Brits volunteered to help the elderly and the sick.
The heir to the throne remains in good health with only mild symptoms, with the Queen speaking to Prime Minister Boris Johnson for her weekly briefing on Thursday, Australian time.
The chats remain private, but it was expected that her son’s health was part of the conversation.
The royal family posted a picture of the Queen on the phone, as it sought to reassure the nation she was well despite Prince Charles’ diagnosis.
“The Queen held her weekly Audience with the Prime Minister today by telephone,” a tweet from the Royal Family account said.
“Her Majesty – pictured this evening at Windsor Castle – has held a weekly Audience with her Prime Minister throughout her reign.”
The Queen held her weekly Audience with the Prime Minister today by telephone. Her Majesty - pictured this evening at Windsor Castle - has held a weekly Audience with her Prime Minister throughout her reign. pic.twitter.com/9rYoLTfkO4
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) March 25, 2020
Prince Charles contracted coronavirus after he was the star guest at a fundraiser for an Australian bushfire relief dinner in London.
It emerged the heir to the throne met the Queen just a day before he became infectious with the deadly virus.
The 71-year-old tested positive for the bug on Monday night after he began to display mild symptoms.
Prince Charles had also met Prince Albert of Monaco this month at a charity event in London, just a few days before the son of the late Grace Kelly tested positive for the virus.
Prince Charles’ doctors have estimated that he was contagious on March 13 – a day after he attended the Australian bushfires fundraiser at Mansion House in London.
He has not seen the Queen since that date, according to royal sources.
There were more than 200 people at the fundraising dinner on March 12, with guests mingling in close proximity at the event, which raised more than $400,000.
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Australian comedian Adam Hills ran an auction, with a host of London-based Australian business heavyweights in attendance at the intimate function.
Prince Charles had been using a namaste greeting in recent weeks after health officials told people to stop shaking hands.
Although, the dedicated, hard working royal, was seen several times forgetting the directive and offering people his hand.
Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, has tested negative to the virus and the couple were now in self isolation at Balmoral Castle.
“In accordance with Government and medical advice, the Prince and the Duchess are now self-isolating at home in Scotland.”
The tests were carried out by the NHS in Aberdeenshire where they met the criteria required for testing.
“It is not possible to ascertain from whom the Prince caught the virus owing to the high number of engagements he carried out in his public role during recent weeks.”
The Queen, 93, moved from Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle earlier than usual because of the outbreak and she had been wearing gloves when handing out awards before she cancelled her engagements.
Prince Philip, 98, came down from his cottage in Norfolk to join her at Windsor.
A Buckingham Palace staffer had also contracted coronavirus.
Over 70s had been told to stay at home for 12 weeks in Britain because of the higher risk of complications from the virus.
The royal family appears to have been prepared for the virus, separating those in direct line to the throne.
Prince William and Kate have moved to Amner Hall in Norfolk, three hours from London.
Meantime, Fox News reports that Prince Charles’ youngest son, Prince Harry, who is currently in Canada with his wife Meghan Markle and their son Archie Harrison, wanted to return to London “straight away” after his father’s diagnosis.
Harry was reportedly told by the patriarch “not to travel,” assuring the 35-year-old “he will be fine.”
“Harry and (his older brother) William are now on speaking terms again and this has healed the rift that was ongoing,” a palace insider said, according to Fox News.
“Both brothers have linked up with Charles via video and joked and made him feel happy that they were together again.”
CHARLES COVID-19 TEST SPARKS CONTROVERSY
Britain says Prince Charles did not jump the queue for a test because his symptoms and condition met the criteria.
When asked why the heir to the British throne had a test while millions of frontline health workers have not, Britain’s junior health minister, Edward Argar, said: “My understanding is that his symptoms, his condition, met that criteria.”
“The Prince of Wales didn’t jump the queue,” Argar told Sky news.
According to advice on the Scotland’s National Health Service website, most people with symptoms of the virus are simply instructed to stay at home and will not be tested.
“Generally, you’ll only be tested for COVID-19 if you have a serious illness that requires admission to hospital,” the advice says.
Scotland’s Chief Medical officer said there were clinical reasons as to why the royals were tested, and a royal source said that Charles had a test because of his age and medical history, while declining to give further details.
However, on social media there was some criticism of the decision to test the royals when others had been denied testing because of a shortage.
“We wish him well, but this is a national crisis in which we all have a stake and in which we all risk losing loved ones,” campaign group Republic, which wants to abolish the monarchy, said on Twitter.
“Now is the time for equal access to medicine. No exceptions.”
The volunteers will deliver much needed medicine, food and support to more than 1.5 million vulnerable residents as the country steps up its coronavirus battle.
The UK government had sought 250,000 volunteers to help people manage with its 12-week lockdown for those over 70 and the seriously ill.
But in one day they smashed that figure, with twice as many signing up to do their bit to save lives and ease pressure on the National Health Service.
The UK has also been pinning its hopes on new testing for people who may have already had the illness but with mild or no symptoms.
At least 3.5 million testing kits have arrived in the UK, with scientists now working out which will be most effective.
Health staff will get the first tests and may be allowed back to work if it shows they had the virus and recovered.
An Oxford University study claimed that as many as half the UK population may have already contracted the virus.
Meanwhile, a 21 year old UK woman, Chloe Middleton, died of the virus despite her family claiming she had no underlying health problems.